"It
can be the very best friend you have," says the Santa Ana, Calif.,
public relations consultant. "But you have to use it right."

Kerr's
two-sided view of Microsoft's popular presentation and graphics program
mirrors a debate coursing through business and academia. While many
embrace the values of PowerPoint as a potent business tool, there are
others who contend that it's a drag on effective interaction €" that it
confuses, distorts and even strangles communication.

Microsoft
Office Small Business Edition 2003 enables you to better manage your
customer data within your Outlook application. It's called Business
Contact Manager.

More

But, as Kerr points out, any discussion of PowerPoint's
merits and miscues merely illustrates the importance of using the
program to best advantage. Here are 10 ways to use PowerPoint to help
make your business look brilliant, not brainless.

1. Hold up your end with compelling material.

In
a way, PowerPoint's ease of use may be its own worst enemy. However
simple and engaging it can be to build eye catching slides and
graphics, bear in mind that PowerPoint isn't autonomous. The audience
has come to hear you, not merely to stare at images tossed onto a
screen. Build a strong PowerPoint program, but make sure that your
spoken remarks are no less compelling. "PowerPoint doesn't give
presentations €" PowerPoint makes slides," says Matt Thornhill,
president of Audience First, a Midlothian, Va., business that offers
presentation training. "Remember that you are creating slides to
support a spoken presentation."

2. Keep it simple.

We've all likely seen PowerPoint and other presentations where the
speaker seemed ready to propose to the program. After all, it was clear
that he fell in love with every wrinkle, special effect and other bit
of gadgetry available. But the most effective PowerPoint presentations
are simple €" charts that are easy to understand, and graphics that
reflect what the speaker is saying. Some authorities suggest no more
than five words per line and no more than five lines per individual
slide. "Don't gum up the works with too many words and graphics," Kerr
says. "Do you really need to have everything up on the screen?"

3. Minimize numbers in slides.

PowerPoint's
lure is the capacity to convey ideas and support a speaker's remarks in
a concise manner. That's hard to do through a haze of numbers and
statistics. For the most part, most effective PowerPoint displays don't
overwhelm viewers with too many figures and numbers. Instead, leave
those for a later, more thorough digestion in handouts distributed at
presentation's end. If you want to emphasize a statistic in PowerPoint,
consider using a graphic or image to convey the point. "For instance,
when I once was talking about the prevalence of Alzheimer's patients, I
used a photograph of an old woman rather than just throwing up a number
on the screen," Kerr says.

4. Don't parrot PowerPoint.

One
of the most prevalent and damaging habits of PowerPoint users is to
simply read the visual presentation to the audience. Not only is that
redundant €" short of using the clicker, why are you even there? €" but
it makes even the most visually appealing presentation boring to the
bone. PowerPoint works best with spoken remarks that augment and
discuss, rather than mimic, what's on the screen. "Even with
PowerPoint, you've got to make eye contact with your audience," says
Roberta Prescott of The Prescott Group, a Connecticut-based
communications consulting firm. "Those people didn't come to see the
back of your head."

5. Time your remarks.

Another
potential land mine is a speaker's comments that coincide precisely
with the appearance of a fresh PowerPoint slide. That merely splits
your audience's attention. A well-orchestrated PowerPoint program
brings up a new slide, gives the audience a chance to read and digest
it, then follows up with remarks that broaden and amplify what's on the
screen. "It's an issue of timing," Kerr says. "Never talk on top of
your slides."

6. Give it a rest.

Again,
PowerPoint is most effective as a visual accompaniment to the spoken
word. Experienced PowerPoint users aren't bashful about letting the
screen go blank on occasion. Not only can that give your audience a
visual break, it's also effective to focus attention on more
verbally-focused give and take, such as a group discussion or question
and answer session.

7. Use vibrant colors.

8. Import other images and graphics.

Don't
limit your presentation to what PowerPoint offers. Use outside images
and graphics for variety and visual appeal, including video. "I often
have one or two very short video clips in my presentations," says New
York technology consultant Ramon Ray. "It helps with humor, conveys a
message and loosens up the crowd."

9. Distribute handouts at the end €" not during the presentation.

Some
people may disagree with me here. But no speaker wants to be chatting
to a crowd that's busy reading a summation of her remarks. Unless it is
imperative that people follow a handout while you're presenting, wait
until you're done to distribute them.

10. Edit ruthlessly before presenting.

Never
lose the perspective of the audience. Once you're finished drafting
your PowerPoint slides, assume you're just one of the folks listening
to your remarks as you review them. If something is unappealing,
distracting or confusing, edit ruthlessly. Chances are good your
overall presentation will be the better for it.

*Anjali*IF-Dazzler

Thanks Humm---Powerpoint is a pretty good program and pretty easy to
navigate. A few years ago when I was working at a hospital---the
doctors told me to make a presentation to them by the end of the
week. I had no idea how to use Powerpoint, but i was able
to teach myself how to do it b/c it is pretty basic and simple to use.

I agree---you never want to make your slides to wordy.
Rather, you should have brief points on the slides with good graphics
and you should expand on each point in your own words.

rabeeak2003IF-Dazzler

I am in 8th grade and I have to do mannnnnyyyyyyyyyyyyyy presentations! i just hate going in front and presenting but it is for a grade so I have to! and yes meghavi, I can always rely on humm/sunny for help with technology!

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